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Prosecutors say Hines crossed the line between police and constables, charging him impersonating a police officer and firearms violations for allegedly buying Glock handguns that in Massachusetts only police can have.

He's fighting those charges, but the criminal case against him taken together with pictures posted online highlight a glaring disparity between what many say are outdated laws governing constables and the role they play in modern court enforcement.

"There was a time when constables did some public safety work in the 1800s, but they don't anymore," said Chief William Brooks, president of the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association and head of the Norwood Police Department. "They are strictly civil process servicer(s). They are not the police. And they should not pose as the police."

Brooks said it's time for Massachusetts to update some of those outdated laws that still treat constables essentially as police officers, laws that predate the modern police departments now in force.

For example, he points to the form for search warrants that say that not just police officers but constables as well have the authority to execute them -- an authority that could include, for example, the power to enter someone's home without their consent to execute the warrant.

"The problem is that some of the language that is in the statute about police and constables and warrants and process and so forth is a little misleading, or it's just not clear. It would be nice to have these statutes updated," Brooks said.

Now state Public Safety Secretary Daniel Bennett, is joining those calls, saying it's time to update state laws dealing with constables that were based on English statutes from the 1400s.

"They have extensive powers there to arrest. And in fact, they have in a lot of ways the same powers as police officers," he said. "And in fact, they would arrest you in the weekend and hold you in their cellar until the courts opened up."

Focus on constables is increasing in the wake of the near-fatal shooting of two Boston police officers earlier this month by Boston Constable Kirk Figueroa. He got his constable's license from Boston despite having an out-of-state criminal arrest record including charges of arson and impersonating a police officer, a spotty work history and a seeming fascination with police and military matters.

Paul Terrio, president of the Massachusetts Constables Association, said that cases like Figueroa's aren't representative of the business.

"This is about making the right contact with the right paperwork and getting it properly served," said Terrio, who is an elected constable in Norfolk and appointed in Foxborough.

While Terrio says that constables have the power to make arrests in civil cases, such as unpaid debts, those are rare. He favors a low-key approach.

"Our job is to really make sure people get to court. There are varying degrees of how you can handle that. You can try to convince people to come in, you know, technically you can handcuff them and bring them to court. (It's) not always the best course of action but certainly it has happened," he said.

"We're not police officers, no, and in no way should we ever be mixed up with a police officer," he said.

Terrio says his group offers training but there is no requirement to do so.

Darryl Hines declined to go on camera, and his attorney wouldn't specifically address the case but said that he believes constables are considered law enforcement, an argument that Hines has made in court papers.

"Law enforcement agencies throughout the Commonwealth routinely purchase firearms for their departments for issuance to officers within their department," said Hines attorney Jason Guida. "There is no prohibition in the laws for doing this.""It looks like he is trying to pass himself off as a police officer," reporter Karen Anderson said.

"Constables are thoroughly vetted by their police departments, they are sworn in by their municipalities, they a have specific statutory authority that the Legislature has given them," Guida replied.

There are signs that that authority is about to get restricted.

In Salem, where Hines is licensed, and in Boston, officials are eyeing new ordinances.

Secretary Bennett said after the Boston shooting, he began reviewing the laws and was stunned to find out how much power constables have. He says they can even take people into custody for criminal issues.

"That criminal could be as simple as trespassing if a judge issued a warrant for you," Bennett said.

While Boston and Salem, where Hines works, are eyeing local ordinances to tighten oversight of constables, Bennett has been working with state Rep. Brian Dempsey, D-Haverhill, chair of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, to review the laws governing constables.

"We need some legislation to take away those powers. The constables don't have the same training as police officers, shouldn't be making those kinds of arrests, and we've been working with Chairman Dempsey in the Legislature to take away those powers before there is a terrible accident or something happens to the public that puts their lives in danger," he said.

"Law enforcement agencies throughout the Commonwealth routinely purchase firearms for their departments for issuance to officers within their department," said Hines attorney Jason Guida. "There is no prohibition in the laws for doing this.""It looks like he is trying to pass himself off as a police officer," reporter Karen Anderson said.

"Constables are thoroughly vetted by their police departments, they are sworn in by their municipalities, they a have specific statutory authority that the legislature has given them," Guida replied.

There are signs that that authority is about to get restricted.

In Salem, where Hines is licensed, and in Boston, officials are eyeing new ordinances.